James sat across from Amber with Tilly and Bartleby sitting by to listen and give their two cents when called for. What was strange for this meeting was that it was James who called it and Amber stared at him with crossed arms. The atmosphere was tense, and James could still feel the displeasure toward him, and it made him tense.
"Amber do you really intend to go to Tangu and accepting Zandar's proposal?" He asked and Amber sighed heavily and nodded. "Then hear me out… I have a plan that may work… If you will help."
"I will listen James, but I have no guarantees…" She said coldly and her brother swallowed before standing and began pacing around the small room, speaking as he did.
"As we all know our general goal has always been to kill the usurper and reclaim the throne… I will be the first to admit that my emotions have gotten the better of me when certain opportunities presented themselves to me, but my end goal is still the same as it always has been… With that said I would like to present the motion to all of you that… That we finally make our move." He paused waiting for anyone to raise hell over his bold proposition but when no one said a thing he cleared his throat and continued. "If we can convince Zandar to extend a hand of partnership and trade to Cedric then it may very well give us an opening and-"
"IF Cedric even accepts the offered olive branch," Bartleby said and James nodded.
"Yes, yes I know he may not even take it. But even if he doesn't it still gives us a chance to bring in an entire Tangu army right through the front gates."
"You want me to use Zandar's feelings for me to gain access to his army's," Amber growled and James shook his head.
"You wouldn't be using him, Amber, just be direct and I promise he will offer his help." There were looks of uncertainty on the faces around him and James placed his hands on the table, leaning on it as he spoke. "Without numbers as they are now, we will never have enough power to mount a full-on attack. I know we have gone this long keeping our closest friends out of our Kingdoms problems but at this rate, it will never end… We need a direct approach and greater numbers and Tangu will be our answer."
Four weeks had passed since Elfonso had returned to Elvenmoor with a signed document granting permission to open trade with Enchansia. Cedric even got to keep the sack full of samples and he seemed very pleased with what was there. But still, Cedric hardly spoke to Sofia and the silent treatment was truly beginning to wear her down.
The early evening was quiet, and Sofia walked back to her tower with a bottle in her left hand and scrolls in her right hand. She was ready for a relaxing evening and the sweet wine would help greatly. The halls were empty and cold like always, curtains drawn closed blocking the view of the setting sun and blanketing everything in darkness. She didn't mind the dark much anymore, finding some comfort in it and seeing it as a sign for relaxation and peace. What she didn't expect was a guest room opening and nearly being knocked over by the maid rushing out. She was flustered and her uniform was a mess, obvious signs of castle employees having a tryst behind closed doors but what caused her heart to clench was Cedric standing in the door, looking displeased that the maid was still around. His frown deepened and his eyes widened when he locked eyes with Sofia.
She blinked a few times…
She blinked a few more times as if that would change what she was seeing, and when it didn't the feeling of her heart clenching in her chest felt painful. Sofia curtsied and turned away as if the situation didn't bother her at all, continuing to her tower without a word and climbing the stone steps slowly. Her cheeks felt hot and she didn't understand why as she climbed and when she walked into the room and closed the door, she placed the scrolls on the table with the bottle of sweet wine. She reached up to rub her face and jerked her hands away when she felt her cheeks were hot and wet, eyes stinging… When had she started crying?
Cedric moved through the dark halls towards the royal suite he called his own. He passed by the room his parents claimed and in passing, he saw them through the cracked door. His father and mother hugging and rocking back and forth to soft music, just enjoying each other's company. He looked forward and continued until he slipped into his room and sighed, locking the door.
Rubbing his face with his hand he shuffled across the room to sit at his desk, which was littered with sparkling silver sticks, stones, herbs. Sighing he set to work on his little project, not giving his little escapade nor the fact that he had been seen by Sofia. After all, what he did in his spare time and in moments of carnal need was none of her concern.
Yet why did the thought still linger in the back of his mind as he worked.
Hours slipped by and the silence of the room didn't help as he kept his focus on what was before him. From the corner of his eye, he could see 'him', standing there in silence, watching with dead eyes and a frown. When he used his magic to twist two sticks, one sparkling silver, and the other a pinkish-red Bubinga, a very rare type of wood he had stashed away for a rainy day. He felt this was important enough to use it for as he worked the two kinds of wood together until he formed a new stick that was pinkish in color with veins of silver. It was fourteen inches in length once the two sticks were fully fused together and tapered to a rounded point on one end while the other remained thicker, perfect for a grip and twisting to form a flower bud at the bottom. Setting down his handy work he began examining the sparkling stones.
He was set for a long night of hard work and alchemy magic under the watchful dead eyes of his greatest sin.
Two more days slipped by and Cedric had refused to open his door, even for Sofia so she could help him through his responsibilities for those days. She did them alone without him and the people listened. Everything continued to run without him and the weight that the Kingdom was functioning smoothly because of her and not Cedric could truly be felt. She wondered if maybe she should step away for a time and leave him to handle everything for a few days. Make him feel the weight that she bore for him on a daily basis, just to get him to truly realize her value.
She was quick to banish these thoughts of the third day.
She had been preparing to go down with some guards into the village to distribute seeds from storage for the farms. Spring was around the corner and the uncharacteristic warm weather worried her but not too much. She thought now would be the best time to encourage the farmers to prepare for planting season. What she didn't expect was Cedric and his parents joining her, riding upon horses and greeting her warmly. Cedric was silent, looking into the cart to examine what was being distributed and nodding in approval at the choices. She mounted her mare and took her place beside Cedric and slightly back, feeling uncomfortable with being near him, the flustered maid still weighing heavy on her mind. She didn't hear Cedric issue orders to the party and was confused when she watched them go ahead of her and the King.
Cedric made his stallion slow in its steps and fall into pace with Sofia, so they walked beside each other. Sofia focused on the reins in her hands, not wanting to look at him even though she knew he was expecting her to at least glance at him. She made sure not to, fining the leather in her hands far more interesting.
"Have you grown to hate me Sofia?"
The question was out of the blue and it caused Sofia to break her trance on the reins and look at him in confusion.
"What?"
She didn't miss the narrowing of his eyes and the slight sound made by him sucking air through his teeth. But he repeated the question once more, though with a slight edge to his voice and Sofia blinked and looked back down.
"No, I do not hate you, my Lord." She answered truthfully.
"Why not?" He asked looking ahead and Sofia noticed he had slowed his horse more, delaying their arrival more so he could question her more thoroughly she suspected.
"Could you elaborate more on the question My Lord?"
"WHY do you say you don't HATE me? Why do you not hold such strong emotions toward me after what I had done?" He growled a little, but Sofia felt no threat despite his stiff posture. She read it more as him preparing for her words more than anything else.
"It was something your father said to me during my training under him… He told me that not many people can fully harness magic, and the few who do, choose a life of hardship and long-term suffering."
"Yes, I remember that particular lecture while young…" Cedric sighed and then began a poor mimic of his father's voice. "Magic itself is both positive and negative. Constantly at war with itself and we take that war into us. It affects your emotions, your state of mind, and even your actions if left unchecked."
Sofia couldn't help the small snort of laughter and Cedric turned his head away so he could freely smile without her seeing. When he schooled his features back into his usual frown, he looked back to Sofia who had continued talking.
"Your father had even admitted to me that before your mother he was far more self-righteous then he is today… And Winifred was wicked and foul in her deeds against other people… Both admitted that if they hadn't found each other and balanced each other out they would have gotten worse as time went on… I then realized I couldn't let that happen to me." She looked back at her hands with a frown and Cedric looked confused.
"What did you do to prevent the magic from tipping you one way or the other?" He asked, a knot forming in his throat as he felt his chest tighten.
"It took time but I just… Let it go. Yes, I still feel sad when I think upon what happened but the anger… I just let it go and I did so for my own mental health and the safety for others… If I clung to such negative emotions than I would have ended uP JUST LI-" She cut herself off, realizing her sorrow was rising and so was her voice. Sofia breathed deeply before continuing in a more even tone, eyes turned down. "I would have gone down a dark path if I held onto it. That wouldn't have been good for anyone and most of all for me."
"Why not join your 'siblings' then? I am sure they would have found a use for your skill… Instead, you returned here to the village, using your magic to make shoes and brew remedies." These were all questions that he wondered but never voiced until now and he too was now looking down with downcast eyes, focusing on the reins in his hands.
"If I went with them… I very well would have gone the opposite direction and become self-righteous and so focused on getting justice that I fail to realize I was falling all the same… No, the simple life was what I needed."
The silence stretched on as they drew nearer to the village, already Sofia could see the guard was directing for the farmers to form a line so they can distribute what was needed quickly and efficiently.
"…not as simple as one would think," Cedric mumbled and when he noticed Sofia look at him with a front, he was quick to say something else to cover his spoken thought. "If you don't hate me then how do you feel? Why did you… Flee from me the night we dance?"
"This isn't appropriate conversation at the moment my Lord," Sofia said quickly and Cedric watched as she prepared to speed her horse away from him. So, he grabbed the reins and forced both their horses to a stop.
"Answer the question Sofia… WHY?"
His grip on the reins tightened when she tried to pull them away.
"Why!? You know I hate repeating questions Sofia now ANSWER it! WHY!?" Though they were still a ways from the crowd, his rising voice had caught some attention. Sofia could feel the panic rise in her just at she could sense the anger rising in him.
"Because..." She floundered, just wanting away from the situation and for people to stop staring and to go back to listening to the guards.
"Because WHY?" Cedric spoke in a low tone now seeming to be aware of the few onlookers and not wanting them to hear.
"How would it look if you chose a member of the former royal family?" She said. It wasn't what she was truly worried about but it was a good point. It would look desperate and greedy and spiteful. "Even if that member isn't royal by blood... It would still reflect badly not only on your character in the people's eyes but it would reflect badly on me too... A sorceress grabbing for power... That's what I would look like."
There was a long-drawn-out silence and to Sofia's dismay, Cedric leaned closer to her, speaking slowly and trying his hardest to ask his next question without the edge of anger in his voice. The words that left his mouth made Sofia feel both warm and cold at the same time, flustered and sad.
"Do you love me?"
...
"I... I don't know."